The account of Jacob stealing blessings from his father raises many
perplexing questions. How could Isaac not be aware of the true nature of
his twin sons? Why did he insist on blessing his apparently wicked son
Esau? And why was it necessary for Jacob to get the blessings that his
father intended for his brother?

The Rights of the First-Born

We need to first analyze the concept of bechorah, the right of the first-born.
Why should the family inheritance be determined by order of birth,
without taking into account the relative merits of the heirs? The Talmud
in Baba Batra 133b discusses this issue, advising against switching the
inheritance, even if the first-born is wicked and his sibling is righteous.
Why? The commentators explain that we should not make decisions
based on the current situation; in the future, worthy children may come
from the evil son.

Still, why not give preference to the son whom we know to be
righteous and will use the inheritance for proper objectives? Why let the
evil son utilize this wealth for corrupt purposes, just because of a
possibility that he may have upright children?

Segulah Selection

Twelfth-century philosopher Rabbi Yehudah HaLevi explained the
concept of segulah – how a particular people is chosen by God. The
process of divine selection is beyond human understanding and occurs in
a hidden manner. The kernel of light and good is concealed in an
enveloping darkness, just as the spiritual greatness of Abraham could not
be foreseen in the wickedness of his idolatrous father Terach. Only in the
time of Jacob was the segulah nature of his children revealed to all. At that
time it became apparent that his entire family was a “seed blessed by
God.”

Why should this kernel of future good be concealed in evil and
wicked people?

Even negative character traits have their place in the world.
Ultimately, they too will serve the greater good. In order to
perfect righteous traits and straight paths, these bad traits and
convoluted ways must be uplifted. This occurs when the righteous
are able to utilize them for their true purpose.

Isaac’s Love for Esau

The process of divine selection must be free to progress according to
God’s design, without human intervention. Only God knows the path by
which the pure will come forth out of the impure. Therefore, we should
not disrupt the inheritance of the first-born according to what seems to us
reasonable and logical.

Isaac felt that, despite Jacob’s obvious spiritual and moral
superiority, it was not up to him to decide who will carry on
Abraham’s spiritual legacy. Isaac assumed that the separating of
the segulah was not yet complete. Perhaps from the cruel and
brutal traits of Esau, his first-born son, would come an even
greater heir, capable of utilizing and elevating those destructive
traits.

Furthermore, Isaac knew that the world may be mended in different
ways. It could be gently uplifted, as people stream from every
corner of the earth to learn Israel’s teachings of kindness and
truth. Or the world could be rectified through the complete
destruction of those corrupt and violent elements from which no
good will come (as we see in the obligation to destroy Amalek and
the nations of Canaan). Jacob, the gentle scholar in the tents of
Torah, did not possess the temperament necessary to wage wars and
fight against cruel and vicious opponents. How could the segulah
of Israel come from him? True, Jacob was righteous — but many
righteous individuals lived before him whose progeny did not
continue in their path.

Jacob appeared to totally lack these necessary traits of dominance
and power. And Esau was anyway the firstborn, a sign that he was chosen
by God. Isaac valued Esau’s potential to forcibly correct the entire world.
The Torah thus explains Isaac’s love of his firstborn son: “Isaac loved
Esau, for his hunt was in his mouth” (Gen. 25:28). Isaac appreciated
Esau’s ability to hunt and dominate the beasts, the trait needed to
dominate bestial peoples.

The Torah contrasts the different ways in which Isaac and Rebecca
loved their sons. On the one hand, it says, “Isaac will love Esau”
(with the conversive Vav switching it to the past tense). Isaac
valued Esau’s future, his progeny, not his present state which even
Isaac could see was savage and violent. But for Rebecca, the Torah
uses the present tense: “Rebecca loves Jacob.” She loved and
appreciated Jacob’s current state of righteousness.

Esau Under Jacob’s Hand

In fact, Jacob did have a connection to his brother’s traits of cruelty, but
these traits were not an integral part of his soul. This is the significance of
Jacob’s hand holding on to Esau’s heel when they were born. The heel
represents instinctive nature (the Hebrew words for ‘foot’ and ‘habit,’ regel and hergel,
share the same root), while the hand indicates willed and
planned action. Jacob had a hold onto Esau’s heel, i.e., a connection to
those savage traits that were an intrinsic part of Esau’s nature. For Jacob,
however, these traits were not wild and undisciplined, but under the
control of his hand and mind.

(We find a similar idea with regard to King David. The Midrash states that
Samuel was reluctant to anoint David as king after he saw David’s ruddy
complexion. Samuel feared this was a sign that David would spill blood like the
reddish Esau. But God responded, “He has beautiful eyes.” Esau killed for his
own pleasure, but David will kill according to the dictates of the Sanhedrin (the
high court), which is called the “eyes of the people.”)

Jacob will be capable of performing the same brutal
actions as Esau, albeit out of necessity and judicious choice. He
will be distressed by the need to utilize his brother’s
characteristics, but will recognize their usefulness in achieving
the final goal.

Acquiring Esau’s Blessings

Now we understand why Isaac preferred Esau. But why did Jacob need
to take his brother’s blessing?

Jacob realized that he was the true spiritual heir, and he needed the
blessings of rule and sovereignty — “nations will serve you,” “you will be a
like a lord over your brother.” But it was important that his father think
that fierce Esau was the object of the blessing. These blessings require
strength and leadership. They helped Jacob utilize Esau’s traits when
necessary, even though they were not part of his inner nature. Therefore,
his mother clothed him in Esau’s garments. For the sake of the blessings
of stable rule and firm reign, Jacob’s outer appearance needed to be like
that of ruthless Esau.

When Jacob announced to his father, “I am Esau your first-born,” he
did not truly lie. Jacob had truly acquired his brother’s traits. He had
become Esau, only in a better fashion. Most certainly, his father
had spoken to him in the past about the need to acquire these
negative traits for the sake of serving God. Jacob could now
proudly report to his father, “I have done as you have requested,”
And afterwards, Isaac was able to declare, “I have eaten of all.”
All that I desired to taste, I have found in Jacob. “Yes, he shall
be blessed.”